Guns & Roses
by Kirei Aoi
Summary: AU. All Mikan Sakura ever wanted in life was a chance to avenge her mother's death, but when Natsume Hyuuga enters the picture, things begin to take a turn for the worse. — "Give me back my underwear, you pervert!" He only smirked in return, placing the said item in his back pocket. "Can't, it's evidence now."
1. Chapter 1

Guns & Roses

Disclaimer: I do not own Gakuen Alice

* * *

Chapter 1

Mikan nestled in her bed, wrapping herself in her lavender comforter that smelled of vanilla and tangerines. She was so happy to be inside. All she needed was a cup of Hot Choco, and her day would be perfect.

"Mikan, are you up?"

The 24 year old woman groaned. The last thing she wanted to do was get out of bed this morning. _Why is it so cold? _She'd been awake for almost two hours now, too stubborn to leave her warm sanctuary and venture out into her cold, awaiting death.

She rolled over and glared at her ceiling, as if it was its fault her bliss ended early.

She heard faint knocks on her door and looked towards it, watching as it opened softly, her father's head peering in and looking at her.

"Are you planning on getting up anytime soon?" Her father gave her a pitying look, realizing just how cold she was. "We're going to be late."

She watched him slip inside her room and turn on her heater. He walked across her beige carpet to the other side of the room towards her single window and sighed. "No wonder you're so cold." She stared at her window, watching as he closed it.

_Oh_

"Now get up kiddo, breakfast is ready."

"Alright, I'll be down in a sec." She smiled at her dad, silently thanking him for correcting her stupidity, _again_.

She watched him leave her room and close her door behind him.

The brunette slowly climbed out of bed, shivering in the process. She made a beeline to the full length mirror attached to her closet door.

The girl in the mirror frowned at her. She looked just like her mother did, before she was murdered.

Balling her fists she glared at her reflection. She swore again, that she wouldn't let those bastards get away. It's the only reason why she became a detective in the first place.

"Mikan?"

"I'm Coming dad!" She took a deep breath and smiled, taking one final glance in the mirror before opening her closet to get ready.

* * *

"What the hell do you mean by you don't _think_ there's enough evidence?"

The brunette stared at her father. He was probably talking to someone from work. Yawning, she leaned on the wall closest to the stairs. Her father could be very strict sometimes, and being the chief of police he had every reason to be.

"Dammit! Then get a warrant and find something!"

Being the only parent she had left, he fully understood that he had to be both a father and mother to her.

"Useless people can't do anything for themselves—" He glanced from his phone to look at her.

"Mikan, you look so beautiful today."

She tossed him a cheerful smile.

_So strict yet, so loving._

"Thanks dad."

He returned the same smile. "Of course,"

Although she was her mother's twin, her personality was 110 percent from her dad.

"What's for breakfast?" She asked, watching him take two bowls from the cabinet.

"Lucky Charms~"

She couldn't help but chuckle at his antics. Ever since her mother died, he always kept a smile on his face whenever he was around her.

_"If I smile, I can only hope that you will smile as well." _

She stared fondly at her dad, eyes stinging with tears threatening to fall.

"What's wrong kiddo?" He questioned, a concerned expression on his face.

"Oh, it's nothing." She beamed at him. "Let's hurry and eat so we can leave, we wouldn't want Hotaru to get upset."

If he wouldn't cry, then she wouldn't either.

"Ah right!" He laughed lightly. "I totally forgot. Let's Hurry."

* * *

She glared at the silver Toyota taking a turn in her driveway, her dark eyes penetrating through the windshield trying their best to stab the driver. Who did these fools think they were, showing up so late?

"Taruuu~" The chief of her department spoke to her, radiating the largest smile he could.

Her eyes darkened, almost up to par with her raven hair.

"Yikes Taru, what's with the look?"

She tossed her bag to Mikan in the back seat before taking her place up front.

"You're late Yukihira." She rolled her eyes. "And don't call me that."

"Awe, but Tar-" She glared at him again.

"Hmph." She heard him mumble something about the Imai's and how they were never any fun. She rolled her eyes and turned to Mikan.

"I thought you weren't supposed to return to work for another few days?"

"Doc let me out early."

The raven haired beauty stared at her best friend, wondering why she always made stupid decisions. "Are you sure you're okay to go back?" She asked, not breaking eye contact.

"Of course I am." Mikan smiled at her best friend for worrying about her. "Besides, you know I can't resist you guys."

Hotaru sighed, trying to remind herself why she even talked to this fool in the first place.

"Well whatever happens, it's all on you." She said before turning away from her friend and looking out the window.

Mikan smiled at her. She knew it wasn't true; Hotaru loved her way too much to turn her back on her when she was needed. Now all Mikan needed to do was get her to admit that.

They pulled up to a stone building, parking at a designated sign that read "Staff Only".

_APD: Alice Police Department._

She smiled up at her second home in which she hasn't seen for almost three weeks.

This was the very place where her parents first met. Her dad just a trainee at the time, and her mom filing a complaint about an obvious jerk boyfriend.

She giggled to herself. It was the one story they told her that she never got tired of hearing.

The sound of slamming doors took her out of her reverie.

Hotaru, after leaving the car, turned her attention to Mikan, staring at her for a not more than a few seconds. "Oh." Mikan grinned, grabbing Hotaru's bag from the back seat before coming out herself. "Here you go."

Hotaru took her bag away from Mikan, turned away from her and walked towards the department.

"Funny, all the Imais are exactly the same."

Mikan looked at her dad. He was close with Hotaru's parents and she knew he loved her like a second daughter. After her father passed away and her mother became gravely ill, Hotaru came here hoping to make money to pay for her medical bills. They offered to take her in but she refused.

_"More than anything, I hate being in debt to people."_

So she rented an apartment, got a job, and four years later she was much more than successful.

Almost to the door of the department Hotaru turned around to find the two idiots smiling at each other.

"Are you two coming or not?"

"Ah! So late," Yukihira yelled. "C'mon Mikan let's go!" He said before he ran to the building, Mikan following closely behind him.

Walking through the tall doors of the building, Mikan looked at all the people surrounding the area, clearly waiting for her.

"Welcome back Mikan!" They simultaneously greeted her. She could only stare lovingly at them, her co-workers, her family, as they welcomed her return.

Watching her idiot of a best friend, Hotaru rolled her eyes before turning around and walking into her own office of the department.

"This is so stupid." She said, closing the door behind her.

"Mikan,"

She turned around to see one of her childhood friends grinning like a stupid little boy. He placed a box of chocolates in her hand.

"Welcome back Mikan," He laughed a bit. "I got these for you."

"Whoa, thanks Koko." He acknowledged her thanks with a hasty nod and smile.

She smiled at him. She always thought that Koko had this special charm to him. He was funny in his own kind of way, especially with that smile that never left his face. Sure he looked stupid as hell sometimes, but it was useful when everyone else around you was super gloomy.

"So how are you feeling?" He asked her.

"Much better!" She replied back to him, no longer focused on her thoughts.

"Great! Cause' I need you to do me a favor." He beamed showing both rows of his teeth.

Why was she not surprised?

"Sure what is it Koko?" She asked him.

"Well, the thing is-" He grinned at her. "I was talking to your dad this morning right?"

Mikan smiled to herself. _So this was the idiot who got yelled at._

"And like he told me to get more evidence for the case I've been working on! But that's like asking for the impossible!" He stopped only to take a short breathe. "We pretty much scrubbed the whole place with our tongues to get what we got."

_Ew._

"He seemed super pissed! So, I was wondering if—"

"If I can calm him down before he got to you." She finished his sentence for him.

Koko looked at her as if she were some supernatural being.

"Whoa how'd you know that?" He asked her. "Pfft. And people say that _I_ can read minds."

She only half smiled at him. Of course she knew that. He'd only ever asked her that like twice a week for the past two and a half years.

"Look, there's a lot more chocolates where those came from."

She gave a questioning look at the small box resting in her hands. Was he _bribing_ her right now?

An unusual silence passed before she broke out into a fit of laughter. She missed this so much.

"So you'll do it?" He asked her.

"I don't know. Maybe you should ask him." She gestured for Koko to look behind him at her father who was waiting for him to realize he was there.

"Ch-Chief, I was just uhh..."

"You were just what?" He took the box away from his daughter, the smile disappearing from her face and being replaced by a frown.

_Why is he taking away my babies?_  
Putting his other arm around Koko's shoulders, he smiled at the shorter boy.

"C'mon son, _let's take a walk."_

_"Did you know that bribery was a crime?" _He asked Koko on their way to his office.  
_"No Sir!"_

Mikan smiled at the two men as they walked away.

_Now what?_

Sighing, she began to walk around the department looking for something, _anything _to do. She was already aware of the lecture her father gave her colleagues about not letting her work so, she'd probably have to end up mooching from someone else's case.

She walked around the department aimlessly for a few minutes thinking who she could possibly go to.

_Sigh. How is there nothing to do right now?_

"Sakura?"

Mikan turned and met with another familiar face.

"Yuu? What are you doing here?"

He waved a very white folder in front them.

"Autopsy report for Koko's case came in." Mikan eyed the folder. "And I heard you were coming back today so I decided to bring it in myself, you know, and see how you were keeping up."

"I'm doing great." She stretched a bit to prove her point. "So this case Koko's working on..."

"Oh this? They thought it was a suicide mission gone wrong but I don't think that's quite it." Yuu opened the folder to show her. "Here, look." He pointed to the woman's stomach. "The way the gun was shot, it was obviously done by herself, but..."

"But?" Mikan took the folder from his hands. She eyed the woman's body.

"Wow she's charred. What happened?"

"The house was burnt down. She died from the fire, not the bullet."

She looked at Yuu. "But if she was going to kill herself, why go through all the trouble of burning down the house too?"

"My point exactly. I can't help but think someone else was involved."

"Fire from the mitten on the stove catching aflame? Maybe she just forgot."

"You sound like Koko right now." Yuu sighed, taking the folder from her grip. She looked at it as if she'd lost all her hopes and dreams in the past 5 seconds.

"Any idea where he is, Sakura?"

"Huh?" She looked at him. "Oh. He's with my—" She stopped talking, feeling as if she'd just thought of the greatest idea in her lifetime.

"Your what, Sakura?

"Ah, he's with my dad." She threw him a huge smile. "He's pretty upset with him right now. How 'bout I take this over to him for you?"

"Oh my, would you really?" He gave her his most genuine smile. "That'd help me out a lot, thanks."

"Sure thing Yuu~." She grinned. Finally, the love of her life was back in her possession. She waved as she watched Yuu walk away from her.

_Muahaha_

Slipping into the bathroom stall, Mikan opened the white manila folder.

"Let's see what we have here.."

_Name, age, occupation, blah blah blah._

_Ah! Here we are~__._She looked over the paper in her hand. There was a picture of a young woman.

_Saaya. _

The victim's younger sister.

* * *

Delicate hands steadily and carefully raced across the keyboard. How the hell did the chief expect her to get all this work done in time? Especially with all that noise he was making.

She flinched when she heard something drop again and a faint _"I'm okay" _behind the closed doors of her chief's office. She let out a huge breath, continuing her unfinished work.

"Misaki?"

Frustrated, the irritated woman slammed her hands on the unsuspecting keyboard, adding random letters to the document she was typing.

"What?" She snapped, looking up at the idiot who was disturbing her. Her temper relaxed and a huge smile replaced her frown when she saw who it was. "Hey Mikan, sorry I couldn't make it to your welcome back party." She smiled at her little sister-like friend. "How are you feeling?"

"A lot better hehe." She hugged the older woman. "Hey I was wondering if you could do me a favor."

"Sure Mikan, what's up?" As soon as the words left her mouth, she immediately regretted them.

_This is ridiculous. Absolutely ridiculous._

"Whoa, hold on there girl." Misaki gawked at her junior. "You want me to put you on Koko's case? _Without_ letting your father know first?"

The brunette smiled at her friend. "Mhm~ He and I can work on it together!"

"You've gotta be kidding me. Are you trying to get me fired?"

"Oh, come on Misaki. It'll be fine. All you really have to do is just put my name on the case and I'll take care of the rest."

Misaki couldn't help but sigh. Reassuring herself that it would be fine, she tucked her pale red hair behind her ear. "Okay, fine." She smiled softly at her younger friend.

"Wow, really!?" The brunette grinned widely and hugged her friend. "Thanks a lot Misaki. You won't regret this!" Letting her go, she smiled once more, and jogged away, the radiant smile never leaving her face.

She couldn't help but sigh again. This was going to be a stressful day for her.

* * *

The bustling noise of the busy city streets could be heard from the very top floor of the Tokyo police department building. It was a very splendid scene indeed, trees swaying in the calm, cold breeze, small people running back and forth; it was almost like watching a television show.

On this very peaceful day, in the very immaculate office, of this very police department, stood a very,_ very_ angry man.

"You plan on doing _what _to me?"

"I'm transferring you." His employer straightened the papers on her desk, somewhat peeved at having to repeat herself.

"Chief, you can't do that. I'm—"

'You're our very best. I know that Natsume, but we can't just let this incident go unnoticed."

"You're well aware that it wasn't my fault." The young man, known as Natsume, spoke calmly, almost as if he wasn't affected by the situation at all.

"I know it wasn't Natsume, but someone has to be punished." His chief stood up and walked in his direction. She looked in his eyes, that same pitying look people always gave him. _He hated it._ She placed a freshly manicured hand on his shoulder. "I'm sorry Natsume, but this is for the best." She turned her back on him, and walked out of her office. She would give him time to gather his thoughts, after all being demoted to the city of Alice from a place like Tokyo, wasn't the average person's cup of tea.

Almost half an hour later, his chief's secretary stalked in. She held a stack of documents in her arms. His documents.

_His life._

He began to think how ironic it was that the only thing capable of holding his life together were those exact documents, the same documents that's sending him back to Alice, the same place he worked so hard on getting out of. He watched her place the folders on the desk in front of him. She adjusted her glasses before she began to speak. "Hyuuga, I need you to sign these to confirm your transfer. We'll have a house ready for you, and a new spot in the APD. You'll stay for at least six months, at most a year." His eyes were taken off the papers and focused on her.

"Why is it so long?"

She glared at him. "You got someone hospitalized Hyuuga, you should be happy this isn't permanent." She cleared her throat, suddenly aware of the glare her colleague was giving her.

"You're sister will be trans—"

"No."

She gave him a suspicious look. "No..?"

"No." He was really irate now. That wasn't their decision to make.

"What do you mean no?" The secretary eyed him suspiciously. He can't just reject her like that. The chief would kill her.

"There's no way you're making me take _my _sister from the best hospital in Japan, just to send her to Alice."

"Look Hyuuga, you really don't have a say in this. We aren't going to babysit your little sister while you're off in Alice doing your job."

They stared at each other for what seemed like hours, both refusing to back down their heated glares.

"Stop it you two." The secretary took her eyes off Natsume, and placed them on her chief. They didn't even notice she came back.

"Natsume, please understand why we're doing this. Think about Aoi as well, don't you think she'll be upset if you left without her?"

That's all it took for the young man to sigh and give in. The only reason he came to Tokyo in the first place was to be with her, there's no way he was leaving her behind. He could only glare at the pen as he signed at least six months of all he's worked for away.

* * *

Stupid.

Mikan Sakura was very, very stupid. Kind hearted? Yes, she was very kind, but stupid nonetheless. Did she _really _think she would be put on someone else's case without her father knowing?

Izumi Yukihira stared at his e-mail.

_Sorry chief, she forced me!_

_-Misaki_

Yes, Mikan Sakura was very stupid indeed. Ever since his daughter was young, she suffered from extreme hemophobia. About a month ago, she passed out because of it. She was hospitalized until almost a week ago.

_It hasn't even been a week and she's causing trouble already._

He explained to everyone that she wasn't to be put on any cases until he gave the OK. Leave it to her to sneak her way in somehow.

He sighed. He was expecting a new detective sometime today, and he didn't have time to think about his daughter's antics.

As if on cue, his office phone began to ring.

_"Chief, there's a Natsume Hyuuga out here asking to see you." _

"Send him in, and tell Yome to find Mikan." He'd have to worry about her later. He had things to take care of. A few moments passed before a tall familiar figure entered through his office doors.

"Natsume," Yukihira shot him a grin. "It's nice to see you again."

Natsume nodded at his former mentor, a discreet smile adorning his handsome features. He was also somewhat happy to see him again.

* * *

Mikan was rainbows. _Sunshine_ and rainbows. It's been almost a week now since she's been secretly working on this case with Koko and her dad _still_ hasn't found out about it yet."

She giggled to herself. She's so smart.

Skipping through the main doors of the police department, she greeted everyone and everything. She had a good feeling about this case, and as soon as she solved it, her dad would realize just how crazy he was for being so worried about her all the time. She spotted Koko in the distance leaning against a half wall, going through papers. She jogged up to him and called out his name.

"Mikan, where have you been? I've been looking everywhere for you." He spoke exasperatedly. She left without telling anyone.

"I went to visit Yuu; I found more things for the case. Why, is everything alright?"

"Your dad has been looking for you." He put his arms around her shoulders. "I think he knows about our little secret." He grinned, his stupid pearly whites showing on his already stupid face.

"Oh no, do you think he'll take me off the case?" She asked him, a look of worry painted all over her face.

"Of course he will! Misaki tells me we have a new detective, I hear he's gonna replace you."

"He can't! I worked too hard on this case..."

"It's okay Mikan; I'll fill you in with the details." He kept the grin on his face as he led them to the chief's office.

Walking through the familiar doors of her father's office, Mikan frowned upon seeing that there really was someone new. He was browsing her dad's bookshelf, his dark tresses falling just above his shoulders. He wore all black, and she could see just how lean he was through his clothing. She couldn't help but notice how his pale skin didn't match with the dark wood of the office furniture.

_Must be from the main land._

"Mikan." She jumped at the sound of her name being called. She completely forgot there were other people here.

"Yes dad?"

"I heard you were placed on a case?"

Mikan gulped. "Well you see..." She trailed off, stealing a glance at the person, who would be taking her place on this case— the one who was obviously more interested in her dad's books than the fact that he was taking all her hard work away. She heard Koko's faint chuckle behind her. He really loved to tease her.

"You can continue to work on it."

_"What?" _Strange, that didn't sound like her at all. She looked back at Koko. "Does this mean I'm off the case?"

"Yeah, Sorry Ki—"

"Finally," Koko plastered a stupid grin on his face. "I've been waiting to get off this case for forever." He repressed a sigh of relief before striding to Mikan and patting her on the head, almost as if he was telling saying _"Jokes on you."_ He waved at the stranger before happily jogging out of the office.

_Lazy bastard._

The authoritative voice of her father took her out of her reverie. "Mikan, I want you to meet your new partner for this case."

_"Natsume Hyuuga."_

She didn't even realize he was already standing so close to her, the bookcase long forgotten. She looked up to see the most beautiful man she's ever laid her eyes on in her entire existence.

He towered over her, by a half-foot or so. Because she was naturally short? She didn't know, and frankly she didn't care.

She was more focused on his lips. A small smirk carved delicately on them.

He was hot, and he knew it.

She didn't have time to stop herself from staring though, because in a fraction of a second, her eyes were on his.

_Short eyebrows. _She noticed, but it made him even more attractive.

His dark lashes adorned his features, almost as if they felt privileged to be there. His eyes were cold, and it felt like he was piercing through her soul.

She felt herself shiver.

His eyes were gorgeous, deep pools that reminded her of blood.

_Blood._

She wanted to throw up in his face...

_And that's exactly what she did._

_End._

* * *

_Hello everyone, thanks for reading the first chapter of Guns & Roses. I'd really appreciate feedback, as it's been years since I've last written anything and there's always room for improvement!__ Honestly, I'm not too sure if I improved or if I've gotten worse haha. I plan to update as frequently as I can. I know how much it sucks waiting. Anyway, thank you again, and see you next chapter! _

_Constructive criticism is appreciated._

_—Kirei (4everkawaii)_


	2. Chapter 2

Guns & Roses

Disclaimer: I do not (and probably never will) own Gakuen Alice

* * *

Chapter 2

There was only a small list of things Natsume Hyuuga did not like. For example, he didn't like being weighed down by other people's burdens and emotions. He didn't like being touched, and he wasn't too fond of sweets.

Mikan Sakura was on this list, in fact, she was at the very top. He hated her right now. _Loathed her_. Just the mere thought of her made him annoyed as hell.

He took another sheet of paper towel from the dispenser and ran it under warm water. He repetitively dabbed his shirt, trying to get the stain, _and smell_ off himself.

How did he end up in this situation again? Oh, that's right. That thing threw up on him.

He remembered her from elementary school; that annoying loud girl who would always touch him.

He scowled.

Sure, he might have had a crush on her in fourth and fifth grade, but you can't blame him, every other kid did too. He gave up on her in their first year of middle school though, when he found out his best friend also liked her.

Damn, she was cute though..._was_ cute.

She wasn't sexy like the secretary outside of Yukihira's office, but she had her own charm to her. He almost didn't recognize her.

She was small, both in height and in frame and he wondered how she even became a detective in the first place. She looked innocent, too innocent. Her large doe eyes weren't focused on him though, but rather on his new chief.

Her tied chestnut hair looked as if it had golden highlights.

_Natural?_

He walked closer to her. He thought she seemed kind of bland, boring even, but when she turned to look at him, all his thoughts were rearranged. She looked different from when they were younger. She was no longer that flat chested, snot-nosed baby that always wore her hair in those hideous pig-tails. He eyed her full pink lips and her golden brown eyes full of expression. He smirked when he realized she was staring back at him.

_Maybe he should take her on a date._

It all seemed so perfect really, reunited with an ex-crush, who was so painfully obviously attracted to you.

Yes, very perfect indeed, until she pukes out her breakfast all over you and passes out.

Natsume's eyes narrowed and he continued to scrub the stain on his sleeve.

_Is that a marshmallow?_

He was at the hospital now with that thing people called a woman. It hadn't even been a full 24 hours since he's been in his hometown and here he was babysitting some girl he didn't even like.

_Great._

He walked out of the bathroom and into the ward where the thing was still sleeping.

He glared at her. They put her in fresh hospital robes while he had to walk around like_...this_. He picked up his jacket and left the ward. The nurses told him to stay until she woke up so he could call them, but he didn't have time for that. He made a beeline for the elevator and headed out the hospital doors.

* * *

Mikan stirred awake. Her large eyes slowly focused on the very familiar white walls of Alice Hospital. She pretty much grew up in here after her mother died. That was when all the frequent hospital visits started. She was in middle school then.

_"Hemophobia?"_

_"Yes, the fear of blood."_

She smiled sadly at the memory of her childhood. It's been eleven years already. They first found out when she fell off her bike and scraped her knee. She passed out at the sight of her own blood. She sighed and looked around the ward.

_She was alone. They never left her alone._

She dragged her knees close to her chest and placed her chin there. Her head was hurting and her stomach felt like she tried to digest hell. _What happened?_

Mikan shut her eyes. "Oh god," She whispered quietly to herself. The last thing she remembered was throwing up all over her new partner before passing out.

The brunette began to lightly hit her head against her knees. She cursed under her breathe. She meets a hot new guy, who just happened to end up as her partner, checks him out in front of her dad, and then throws up all over him! _Why did something like that have to happen?_

Lost in her own thoughts, she did not notice the group of people enter into her ward.

"Mikan?"

She winced when her name was called. _Too loud._ She looked up and saw her best friend's older brother, and two of her frequent nurses.

"Hey there Subaru!" Mikan grinned at him. He's been taking care of her here in the hospital for as long as she could remember.

He pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose before speaking. "You passed out again. I told you not to do anything rash. What happened?"

Mikan pouted at him. It's not like it was her fault. He should be blaming that guy who got her here in the first place. Where was that bastard anyway?

As if reading her mind, Subaru Imai gave the room a once over. He calmly glanced at the unsuspecting nurse, she felt small under his gaze. "Where's the one that brought her here?"

"I-I'm not sure Doctor Imai. I gave him specific instructions to stay until she awoke."

Nodding once, he wrote something down on his clipboard before turning back to Mikan. "You are feeling better?"

"Mhm!" She threw her legs over the side of the hospital bed and stretched.

Subaru eyed her for a few seconds before he sighed. "Alright, stay for the night and you're free to go tomorrow morning. And be careful, don't do anything rash."

Mikan laughed lightly at the warning he'd given her numerous times before. "Sure thing," She picked herself up and advanced towards the bathroom door. She turned around to look back at her doctor, taking in his handsome face. She threw a genuine smile his way, receiving a nod in return.

The brunette walked into the connecting door and closed it lightly behind her. She found her clothes washed and folded neatly in a small basket by the sink. Turning her attention to the mirror, she noticed that not only did she feel like hell, but she looked like it too. She reached for the basket with her clothing, taking notice of the amount of paper towels in the trash can beside her. She felt a wave a sympathy wash over her.

He was probably left to sit and watch her while still being in his dirty clothes. She sighed in understanding. If she were him, she probably would've left herself too.

Changing into her fresh clothes, she walked out of the bathroom, only to be met with the empty room of her ward. Mikan Sakura was a very kind spirited person. She told herself she would have to find him, thank him, and apologize.

* * *

Pale brown eyes stared at the wooden door in front of him. His hands shook slightly as he reached for the handle of the door. He wondered if it would be alright for him to enter.

_Of course it's alright. _

He smiled to himself. It was, after all, his daughter behind this closed door. His pride and joy. The smile slowly faded, and was replaced by a small frown. It was his daughter, yes, but would she want to see him?

He disregarded the negative thoughts and grabbed the metal handle of the door. He felt the cold contact against his palm. He breathed heavily, as he was quite nervous. Carefully, he turned the handle of the somewhat heavy door, and pushed it open. Room 106.

He felt like crying when he saw the little girl, covered in bandages, on one of the numerous beds in the room.

"Ai-chan," He quietly called out to her, desperation in his voice.

"Daddy, is that you?" The young girl called out, her blonde locks peeking through the bandages wrapped around her face, threatening to fall out.

"Yes, Ai-chan, it's me. It's daddy."

Hearing this, the young child's mood visibly lightened. "Daddy you came for me! I missed you so much." Her father walked towards her. He removed his hood and gently caressed the little skin showing on her face. "How could they let this happen to you?" He asked her, the tears finally escaping his eyes.

"Don't cry daddy, I'm fine." She smiled a bit, trying her hardest to not wince at the slight pain she felt. "I feel much better now that you're here."

"Excuse me, you're not supposed to be in here." The browned eyed man quickly put on his hood and looked over at the intruding nurse. Not saying another word, he briskly walked passed her and out of the door.

He smiled sadly. "Don't worry Ai-chan, I'll get you out of there."

_I promise._

He made a beeline for the hospital doors, pushing passed the crowds of people blocking his way. It wasn't long before he bumped into someone and lost his balance. He grimaced when he felt the cold floors meet his lower back.

"What the—!" He opened his eyes to see a young woman sprawled out in front of him. The tan skin of her collar showed as she reached to rub her back, her face showing the pain she was also in.

He got up and dusted off his pants before reaching a gentle hand out to her. She looked at him and smiled, taking hold of his out stretched hand and pulling herself up.

She tugged on her skirt, then bent down to get her papers. "Sorry." He couldn't help but apologize to her, seeing that he knocked all her papers down.

"No, it's my fault. I was reading and not looking where I was going haha." She grinned at him. He could only stare in awe at her genuine smile.

_Do I know her from somewhere?_

He shook his head. It was probably just his imagination. He bent down to help her pick up her papers, stopping only when he saw his photo on one of the files. He slowly got up and glanced her way. He wondered if she recognized him.

The woman, noticing he stopped helping her, looked his way. "Is everything okay?"

"Huh? Oh, yes." He looked down at her. "I just remembered I had something to do."

"Oh, okay, thank you for your help." He smiled in response. When he saw that her attention was no longer on him, but on the papers scattered on the floor, he folded the paper with his picture on it and placed it inside his jacket pocket.

The brown eyed man frantically looked around, hoping no one saw what he was doing. Sighing in relief, he continued his way to the hospital doors. He jumped when he heard the pretty voice of the woman he just met.

"Excuse me." Keeping his hand on the doors of the hospital, he only turned his head to look at her. This way he could run if she got the attention of the passing security.

"I think you dropped this." He eyed the object in her palm. He hesitated before walking to her out stretched hand.

"Thank you." He spoke softly to her, his words laced with true sincerity.

She smiled at him. "Look, now we're even." She giggled before wishing him a good day. He nodded at her and left the hospital,

_Never looking back._

_End._

* * *

_Hey guys c:_

_Thanks for reading the second chapter of G&R. I got PM's about it being way too long so here's a shorter, less wordy chapter lol. I want to thank all of you who reviewed, subscribed, favorited, or even read the story at all. I really appreciate it and I want to thank you all for the feed-back._

_Thanks again._

_Kirei_


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